


I Been Down

by athousandcas



Series: Hot Mess AUs [1]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Lonely Merlin, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-27
Updated: 2015-03-27
Packaged: 2018-03-19 19:49:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,916
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3622089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/athousandcas/pseuds/athousandcas
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>I saw <a href="http://theappleppielifestyle.tumblr.com/tagged/prompts">this list</a> of 'hot mess au' prompts and decided to write them since I wanted them so badly. </p><p>This prompt is: "I asked a staff member and they said you've been coming to the pound every day to play with the dog I'm taking home today and that's why you're getting weirdly emotional" AU.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I Been Down

The bell rang as Merlin walked into the pound. Freya beamed from behind the receptionist desk as he walked to the hallway that led to the dog area.  
  
“Hello, Merlin! How are you today?” Freya asked as she straightened the papers in front of her.  
  
“I’m alright, thanks. How is she doing today?” Merlin shrugged out of his brown jacket and rolled up the sleeves of his blue sweater.  
  
“She’s been pretty sleepy. I think you wore her out from that walk yesterday.” Merlin chuckled and waved goodbye to Freya as he entered the room full of barking dogs.  
  
He walked along the aisle, stopping to smile at the newest addition – an English mastiff that looked at him from his droopy eyes with drool hanging from his mouth. Merlin laughed and shook his head as he walked the rest of the aisle to the last kennel. He rounded the corner and saw the cocker spaniel poodle mix sitting upright, as if waiting for him. As soon as he knelt down to pet her through the kennel door, she started to whine and lick his fingers.  
  
“Hey there, girl, how are you?” Merlin bit his lip to prevent himself from smiling too much. Sometimes he couldn’t handle how cute this dog could be. She was still young, just a puppy, so she was a tiny thing and a bundle of energy most of the time. Merlin was really starting to adore her, but he couldn’t afford to buy her and he couldn’t have a dog in his dorm anyway.  
  
Unlocking the kennel, Merlin gently lifted the puppy up, cuddling her close as he walked to the backyard door, “You want to go for a walk again, or do you want to play in the grass?” The dog answered by bombarding his face with kisses as they walked out the room.  
  
***  
  
Arthur sighed as he sat in the coffee shop, staring out the window with is hand under his chin. Morgana continued to lecture him on his lack of involvement in life, how he works too much, blah, blah, blah. He hasn’t really listened to one of these lectures for a while since they were all the same. He was just starting to go over the whole entirety of the Lord of the Rings series in his head when Morgana’s sharp tone pulled him out of his daydream.  
  
“Arthur Pendragon, you look at me this instant.”  
  
“God, what, Morgana? I am trying to enjoy my day off with this fine cup of tea. Will you just be normal for once and make small talk with me?” Arthur whined as he dropped his head on his arm petulantly.  
  
“Fine. It’s your life. It’s fine, whatever.” Morgana sniffed and looked away from her brother’s head where it rested. Arthur peeked, seeing the pout Morgana was so fond of using and sighed again.  
  
“I’m sorry, Morgana,” he said in a monotone voice, “please continue saying what you were saying before I so rudely tuned out.” The apology was lacking, to say the least, but Morgana accepted it and continued as if she had never been interrupted.  
  
“I was just saying, since you won’t go out on dates and you don’t have any friends, because you say you love working so much, that maybe you should get a dog or a cat!” She finished with more enthusiasm than necessary as Arthur just stared at her.  
  
“A dog?” He asked incredulously.  
  
“Or…a cat, you know,” she answered hesitantly.  
  
“How could I ever take care of a pet when I’m hardly ever home?” Arthur spoke slowly as if Morgana was incapable of understanding simple words.  
  
Morgana huffed in frustration and threw her hands in the air. “I give up! Do as you like, I don’t care anymore. Go ahead and be lonely for the rest of your life. Meanwhile, I am going to go see some friends and be friendly as I hangout and be social and have fun and do things with my life.” Morgana quickly gathered her things and left the coffee shop as Arthur bit back a grin at his sister’s impatience with him.  
  
***  
  
Arthur tried not to dwell on what Morgana had told him and he thought he had succeeded, but he was proven wrong when he found himself walking into the nearest animal shelter.  
  
The woman at the desk greeted him kindly, asking if he needed any assistance. He shook his head and smiled before turning to follow the sign towards the cat area of the building. Once in the room it didn’t take him long to conclude that he was not a cat person. The first three ignored his presence entirely while the others were either sleeping or trying to claw at him when he got closer. He quickly slipped out of the door he came in and went back into the main room. The receptionist laughed at the look of horror on his face as he strode over to the door that led to the dogs. He shook his head and blew out a sigh.  
  
Arthur slowly walked down the winding aisle, looking into each kennel as he went. He wasn’t sure what kind of dog he wanted. He knew nothing too big, nothing too slobbery, and nothing too loud. There were some very nice dogs but none of them stood out to him. He rounded the corner, almost giving up on the idea entirely when his eyes landed on a little ball of fur in front of him.  
  
The dog in front of him was tiny, with light brown curls covering its body. She was curled up on a blanket sleeping soundly. At the sound of Arthur approaching, she awakened, yawned, and stretched, nearly losing her balance while doing so. She slowly walked to the kennel door, sniffing Arthur’s outstretched finger and looking up at him with big eyes. Arthur had completely fallen in love.  
  
The woman from the desk came into the room and found Arthur still petting the small dog. She smiled softly at the two, as they seemed to like each other.  
  
“Any luck finding one to call your own?” She asked him.  
  
Arthur didn’t look up from his kneeling position, so intent on the puppy that he didn’t hear the sound of another person enter the room.  
  
“Yes, I’ll take this one, please.”  
  
“No!” A voice blurted.  
  
***  
  
Merlin covered his mouth at his sudden outburst, surprised he had practically yelled at this stranger. The stranger who was now standing up and looking at Merlin with a frown wrinkling his eyebrows.  
  
“Excuse me?” the man asked with confusion, but also a hint of irritation.  
  
“I – just – well…” Merlin stumbled over his words, avoiding the other man’s eyes as much as possible, “Maybe you would like a different dog? What about this one?” Merlin pointed to the mastiff, who stared back unfazed.  
  
“Too much drool. And anyway, I like this one,” the man emphasized, pointing at the puppy below before folding his arms across his chest defiantly. “What is your name again? Do you work here?”  
  
Merlin paled at the man’s tone of voice and stammered, “Mer-Merlin and no, I don’t. I’m just visiting a friend. I’m sorry for the trouble.” He looked down at the floor and swallowed the lump in his throat. “I know you’ll love this one. She’s the best,” his chuckle was shaky as he tried to lighten the mood. Was he really getting this upset over a dog that wasn’t his? He shook his head to clear his thoughts and walked back out to the receptionist area without another word. The man stared after him looking perplexed and feeling slightly guilty.  
  
***  
  
“Don’t worry about Merlin, he’s just upset that he won’t be able to see her anymore,” Freya said, nodding at the puppy that had gone back to sleeping on her blanket.  
  
“What do you mean? Was he planning on adopting her?” Arthur questioned, glancing worriedly at the door the man had exited through. The woman was gathering the dog’s papers and walking back to the lobby, shaking her head.  
  
“No, he just showed up here a couple weeks ago and has come back everyday since to play with her.” She shrugged, “but now she will have a place to call home, which is all we hope for her here,” she smiled back at Arthur.  
  
The woman grabbed paperwork from her desk and walked Arthur through filing it out before leaving him to check on the cats. Arthur decided to fill out his paperwork by the dog’s kennel and quietly stepped into the room. He was just about to turn the corner to her kennel when he heard the man’s – Merlin’s – voice and stopped, peering around the corner.  
  
He was in the kennel with her, sitting cross-legged while holding her on his lap and petting her.  
  
“I know it’s stupid, Teddy, I just figured I’d get to keep you around for a little while longer. I hope you don’t miss me too much…I’ll miss you.” Merlin rubbed his thumb on her floppy ears and smiled. “I was pretty lonely before and you really helped me, so thank you. I think this guy is a prat but I hope he’s good to you. If he’s not, don’t be afraid to run away and come back here. I’ll keep checking to see if you’ve returned.” Arthur felt the pen slip from his fingers too late and heard it hit the ground.  
  
Merlin snapped his head up, saw Arthur and swiftly stood up and exited the kennel, latching the kennel door softly. He swiped his hands across his cheeks and let out an embarrassed laugh. “I hope you didn’t hear that last part,” he grinned.  
  
Arthur sucked in a breath upon seeing the man’s beautiful smile light up his face, despite the fact he was crying just a moment before. He felt dazed and confused. He didn’t realize he was taking too long to answer until Merlin awkwardly cleared his throat.  
  
“Just…well, just be good to her, ok? She likes walks and squeaky toys, but usually when we go on walks, she ends up rolling around in the grass more than walking. And she loves warm and fuzzy blankets, you know, the really cuddly ones?” Merlin’s cheeks turned slightly pink at the word ‘cuddly’ before he continued, “she actually really loves to just cuddle in general. She seems like she’s full of energy but most of the time, she wears herself out pretty fast and then she just naps, so, um, look out for that and make sure she has a stuffed animal. She likes to sleep with those. She’s scared of storms and I’ll stop now before I go too far,” he finished in a rush and ran a hand through his hair before looking at the puppy – no, Teddy, as he called her – and started walking towards the exit. Arthur wanted to talk to Merlin more but he was still stunned from seeing Merlin with Teddy and then everything he had said that he didn’t snap out of his daze until the man had left. Arthur turned toward the dog.  
  
“I guess it’s you and me, now, Teddy,” he whispered.  
  
***  
  
Merlin hadn’t been to the shelter in three weeks and he missed Teddy. He tried to tell himself that it was just a dog, but he was still left feeling empty. Before Teddy, he had gone to his classes, then to work, maybe saw a movie at the theater, and then retired to his room. When he found Teddy, he realized how lonely he truly was and he minded it much more than he thought. Now that Teddy was gone, he was left feeling lonelier than ever.  
  
He had been trying to take a nap in his room when he couldn’t take staring at his small room anymore. He slipped on his jacket, wrapped a scarf around his neck (his favorite one because he was feeling better that day), and left to go on a walk. He decided to walk around the lake despite the chilly day.  
  
He was enjoying the brightly colored leaves and the way they scraped against the pavement as the wind swirled around him when he saw a familiar person walking towards him on the pathway. He furrowed his eyebrows and then stopped in his tracks when he recognized the man with a small dog trailing ahead of him excitedly. The man glanced at Merlin as he approached him and then did a double take as he recognized him, too.  
  
“Merlin, right?” The man smiled and held out his hand.  
  
Merlin grinned back and nodded, gripping the other man’s hand firmly, “I never got your name.” The man’s hands were warm and soft even though it was close to winter. He didn’t want to let go.  
  
“Oh, right, I’m Arthur.” He looked down at Teddy, who was trying to chase a leaf that was blowing with the gust of wind, but her leash stopped her abruptly.  
  
“She looks happy,” Merlin commented.  
  
“Yeah, she’s a pretty happy dog, but I can tell she misses you,” Arthur said, still looking at Merlin as he watched Teddy. He couldn’t help but notice the way the wind blew his hair, how his nose was turning red at the tip, and how Arthur suddenly got the urge to kiss it. He jumped slightly at that thought, his cheeks flaming slightly.  
  
Merlin laughed, “I knew she would. You don’t cuddle her enough, do you?” He asked with a mischievous grin.  
  
Arthur’s eyes widened as he leaned in, disbelief coloring his voice, “I cuddle with her for a good four hours every night. We cuddle all the time. How could she possibly want more?” Merlin’s shoulders shook with laughter at Arthur’s horrified look and serious tone.  
  
Arthur relaxed and started laughing too. Silence followed as they both watched Teddy jump around in the grass. Arthur cleared his throat after a few minutes, “You know, I don’t see any reason why you couldn’t still see her,” he phrased it as a question.  
  
Merlin looked at Arthur with surprise. “Really? You wouldn’t mind?” His eyes lit up with hope.  
  
“Not at all. It would fun, I could learn your ways in how to please her, you would get to see her…and I would get to see you,” Arthur finished hesitantly, carefully watching Merlin’s reaction.  
  
Merlin blushed, but his smile stretched across his face, growing impossibly wider. “Alright, yeah. That sounds wonderful.”  
  
They looked at each other for a moment longer, smiling at each other, before Arthur fumbled with his phone, asking Merlin for his number. They finished exchanging numbers and could feel their time together was about to end.  
  
“Well, give me a call anytime you want to come over. I’d be glad to have you. So would Teddy,” Arthur told Merlin as they slowly began to walk in different directions.  
  
“Sounds great, I’ll see you around then,” Merlin turned to walk away, smiling wide.  
  
Arthur waited a second longer until he made a decision. “Wait! Merlin.” He ran to catch up with the other man. Merlin turned around, looking surprised but hopeful, raising his eyebrows in a silent question.  
  
“Would you, maybe, want to go get some coffee with me? Right now?” Arthur asked, his heart racing inexplicably.  
  
Merlin smiled and nodded. “Yeah – yes. I’d love to.”  
  
***  
  
Two Years Later  
  
Arthur awoke to the pressure of four tiny feet pushing his chest down. Soon after, he felt the licks on his cheek get dangerously close to his mouth.  
  
“That had better be you, Merlin,” he grumbled with his eyes still closed. He felt the bed dip and the feet and licks disappeared. He opened his eyes to Merlin sitting next him, holding Teddy under his chin, cradling her like the baby she was. Merlin saw him open his eyes and slid down the bed so he was lying on his back next to Arthur, their sides touching. Teddy made herself comfortable on Merlin’s stomach as he looked at her with absolute adoration and love.  
  
Arthur looked at Merlin the same way. “You know, Merlin, I sometimes think you only stick around to be with Teddy.” Merlin laughed and turned his head so they were facing each other.  
  
“You would be absolutely right,” he said with a smug expression on his face. Arthur grabbed the pillow out form under his head and hit Merlin’s face with it, earning him a squawk from the other man.  
  
“Hey! Don’t hit Teddy!” He exclaimed, holding the dog to his chest. Once Merlin had settled back onto the bed, he leaned onto his elbow so he was looking down at Arthur and Teddy was lying between them.  
  
“Or, I might stay because I like you, too,” he said nonchalantly. “Or maybe I kind of love you.” His grin brightened the already sunlit room even more.  
Arthur lifted his hand, cupping Merlin’s cheek, before whispering back, “I love you too.” Merlin leaned down and covered Arthur’s lips with his own. Arthur kissed back, cradling the back of Merlin’s head in his hand and running his fingers through the short hairs there. Merlin started leaning more into it, adjusting to straddle Arthur when they heard a whine from between them and felt the small dog crawl up to them even more. They broke apart laughing.  
  
“And we love you, too,” Arthur crooned. Merlin and Arthur lied back on the bed, hands entangled as they cuddled their puppy.


End file.
